Wilbur Ross backs American-Dutch bid for Ethniki Insurance

The US commerce secretary has backed a bid by an American-Dutch consortium to buy the insurance arm of Greece's National Bank, Ethniki Insurance, saying a deal could help US investment flows to the troubled Mediterranean country. Read the full story

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After the failure of the previously announced acquisition attempts made by Fosun, Exin or Gongbao, it seems that a new opportunity to sell Ethniki - Hellenic General Insurance Co. presented itself to National Bank of Greece, with a bid launched by a consortium led by Hannover Re S.E.

The Greek insurers reported aggregate GWP of EUR 2.87 billion at the end of September 2018, up by 2.1% y-o-y, according to the nine-months market report published by the Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies (HAIC).

The National Bank of Greece (NBG) and the owner of the largest and the oldest Greek insurer - Ethniki - will ask the EU for more time to complete the planned asset sale under the EU-approved restructuring plan, according to sources quoted by international media.

Greek insurers will pay over EUR 33.7 million in compensation for the devastating fires that hit Attica on 23 July 2018, according to the first estimate of the Hellenic Insurance Companies Association (EAEE).

At the end of March 2018, the Greek insurance market totaled EUR 999.5 million, up by 3.5% y-o-y, according to the preliminary market figures published by the Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies (HAIC).

China's FOSUN expressed its interest in Greece's largest insurer ETHNIKI a few days before the deadline for the EXIN Group to implement the deal for the acquisition of 75% of ETHNIKI from National Bank of Greece - NBG.

According to the year-end market figures published by HAIC - the Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies, the Greek insurance market totalled EUR.3.78 billion at the end of 2017, up by 0.05% y-o-y.

The sale of the Greek largest insurer to the American-Dutch consortium CALAMOS-EXIN remained under the question mark after CALAMOS Family Partners had filed a legal action against EXIN Financial Services Holdings, wrote ekathimerini.com.

2018-02-21

ON THE MOVE

Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Companies, announced the formation of a new Global Capital Solutions Group and a series of new leadership appointments related to the Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group plc (JLT) acquisition.

Howden, part of Hyperion Insurance Group, announced the appointment of BozidarLJUBISAVLJEVIC as Regional Marine Practice leader for the Howden Turkey, the Middle East and Africa region (TMEA). He will be based in Dubai.

15.01.2019

TOP EVENT

Insurance should be accessible to all social classes, regardless of their wealth and income status. Products offered today are conventional insurance products, largely inspired from the developed markets as "one-size-fits-all" solutions, affordable to only middle- and high-income clients in the Eastern Europe's emerging & developing markets. The low insurance penetration rates across the region show the need for another approach.

On November 1st, an Agricultural insurance conference took place in Skopje, Macedonia, organized by the Insurance Supervision Agency in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy. Drawing attention to the necessity of reducing the risks in agriculture by using insurance was the event's main purpose.

Becoming a growing threat globally, cyber risks is both a challenge and an opportunity for the insurance industry. MUNICH Re's representatives talked to XPRIMM TV in Baden Baden, about the different approach to this type of risk that the Group, as one of the most active players on the cyber market solutions, proposes.

End investors, Insurance-Linked Securities (ILS) funds, and buyers - the three groups active in ILS - have predominantly weathered 2017 loss activity with a view that reinsurance products backed by 'alternative' capital have become mainstream, according to a new Global ILS Market Survey by Willis Towers Watson.

Swiss Re expects the global reinsurance industry to consolidate as the distinction between insurers and reinsurers become increasingly blurred, an executive from the Swiss Group said in Baden Baden, reports Reuters.